Forest Avenue is medium sized 2-story place owned by a couple, Chef John Wyer and his wife Sandy Sabek Wyer.  It is named after the street were Sandy grew up on in Queens, New York, but she has now lived in Ireland for 16 years.  John is from Cork.  They have had this restaurant for a couple years and have recently opened a second place, but John cooks at this one.  Soft rock plays in the background  and a wall of windows to the street lets in nice natural light.  Bare wood tables are nicely spaced and a large part of the kitchen is open to the dining room.  Service is friendly, helpful and efficient.  The menu offers several tasting options of 2, 3 or 6 courses with wine pairings available.  Portions are fairly generous and flavor abounds in everything.  The wine list also offers a “fine wine” option for bottles.  

 

 

We started with a few complimentary snacks, first a bagel donut with a mushroom paste that was warm, a little sweet and good.  A heavy doughy bite, I liked the texture and taste.   House bread is a sourdough with fresh butter. It was nicely crispy and doughy and perfect to soak up some of the delicious sauces to come.

 

The next bite was a tempura of cod with dill mayonaisse.  It was light and delicate.  The fish was great with the dilly sauce.  Very tasty.  A pumpkin roll in cabbage with kimchi inside burst with amazing flavors.  Sweet and herby it was a delicious treat in every bite.

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A cheddar biscuit held a sausage emulsion that was topped with crispy kale.  The buttery, cheddar filled biscuit was a perfect crisp receptacle for the savory emulsion.  It was delicious.

 

The menu started with a salad of crab, salsify, kohlrabi and horseradish.  It was topped with an egg yolk purée and also had bits of potato.  The mild white crab mixed well with the blend of flavorful other ingredients.  Everything worked in harmony for a light refreshing salad.

 

Agnolotti of parmesan was served with Jerusalem artichoke and kale pesto.  The tender pasta tasted like it was filled with a bit of comté cheese mixed with the wonderful parmesan.  The pasta is made in house and was a real winner.  Again, everything blended perfectly for a wonderful set of flavors surrounded by a perfect sauce.  Another delicious course.

 

Hake was served with braised leek, ginger velouté and scallop.  The scallop and hake were both perfectly cooked and it was another dish filled with good tastes.

 

Venison tenderloin was served with swede and red cabbage.  The tender and nicely rare meat was topped with a piece of crispy kale and alongside was a piece of braised venison shoulder.  Both meats were perfectly seasoned and the sides were tasty.  A slice of slightly spicy yellow turnip was topped with well cooked sweet onions.  Another good one!

 

Dessert was a choice of mince pie or cheese.   The cheese was Galway goat blended with Irish goat’s milk cheese alongside quince, honey and candied walnuts.  Some thin crackers finished the plate.  The walnuts were exceptional and the soft cheese was lovely mixed with the quince or just by itself.

 

The Mince pie financier was served with clementine leaf ice cream.  The pie was amazing.  Crispy on the bottom and filled with buttery goodness it was stuffed with a luscious creamy filling.  It was a yum x3!  I thought I was pretty full and then I tasted this and you better believe not a bite was left on the plate.  The ice cream was also good but totally outshined by this amazing pie.  It was all served alongside of puddle of armagnac caramel which held its own in this party of great sweetness.

 

With our coffee they brought some chocolate cookies filled with white chocolate ganache.  Crispy, sweet, creamy – a terrific final treat and  a perfect end for a wonderful meal filled with flavors and textures.

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